BACH & BEFORE Stylus Fantasticus Sonatas of Bach, Buxtehude, Biber, Schmelzer & Bertali
Each of the composers featured on this
recording were proponents of the stylus fantasticus, a term which had its roots
initially in the improvisational and virtuosic
style of organ toccatas and fantasias
of composers such as Frescobaldi,
and which was later transmitted north
through composers like Froberger.
The Austro-German school of violinist-
composers of the seventeenth-century,
including Bertali, Schmelzer, and Biber
continued this tradition in Austria, and
it was carried on, to varying degrees, in
the works of Buxtehude and Bach in
Germany. In 1650 the music theorist
and polymath Athanasius Kircher wrote,
“[stylus fantasticus] is especially suited
to instruments. It is the most free and
unrestrained method of composing,
it is bound to nothing, neither to any
words nor to a melodic subject…” By
1739, composer and theorist Johann
Mattheson described it as “now swift,
now hesitating, now in one voice, now in
many voices, now for a while behind the
beat, without measure of sound, but not
without the intent to please, to overtake
and to astonish.” For Mattheson, stylus fantasticus not only described a style of
composition, but a free and improvisatory
style of performance.
Antonio Bertali was born in Verona but
spent most of his career north of the Alps,
eventually earning the prestigious title of
Kapellmeister at the Habsburg court in
Vienna. Bertali was a master craftsman,
combining virtuosic string writing from
his native Italy with his adopted country’s
sense of instrumentation and advanced
BACH & BEFORE Stylus Fantasticus Sonatas of Bach, Buxtehude, Biber, Schmelzer & Bertali
About
BACH & BEFORE
Total Program Length: 50:37
1 Sonata a due in D Minor Antonio Bertali (1605–1669) 7:42
2 Sonata III in F Major Heinrich Ignaz Biber (1644–1704) 12:12
3 Sonata VIII in D Minor Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (c. 1620–1680) 5:42
Sonata in G Major (BWV 1021) Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750)
4 Adagio 3:21
5 Vivace 1:03
6 Largo 2:08
7 Presto 1:27
8 Sonata in A Minor (BuxWV 272) Dietrich Buxtehude (c. 1637–1707) 7:51
9 Sonata quarta in D Major Johann Heinrich Schmelzer 8:46
contrapuntal techniques. In essence,
these characteristics defined the
stylus fantasticus: an Italianate sense
of melody, harmonic freedom, and
unrestrained virtuosity, combined with
a more rigorous, Germanic sense of
counterpoint. In his Sonata a due, which
is preserved in manuscript in the
Düben Collection in Uppsala, Bertali
bestows on the viola da gamba a
melodic role in dialogue with the violin.
The resulting dynamic relationship is
rich with imitative counterpoint, and
offset by free moving solo sections.
Austrian Johann Heinrich Schmelzer traveled to Italy early in his career
and upon returning to Austria worked
closely with the Italian musicians
employed there, most notably Antonio
Bertali, and may have been the
teacher or mentor of fellow Austrian,
Heinrich Biber. Thus we can trace
a direct line of transmission of the
stylus fantasticus beginning with
Bertali to Schmelzer, and continuing
with Schmelzer to Biber. At the
court of Vienna, one of Schmelzer’s
responsibilities was composing dance
music (including over 150 dance
suites), the primary purpose of which
was to highlight the visual elements
and fantastical characters of the
many dramas, serenatas and lavish
pageants in which the royal family
frequently took part. Schmelzer also
made notable contributions to the
development of the sonata. Sonata VIII comes from Duodena selectarum sonatarum (1659), a collection of
sonatas for one or two violins, viola da
gamba, and continuo. It is Italianate
in style and form, deftly intertwining
rhetorical, imitative and solo episodes
for the violin and viola da gamba.
Schmelzer’s later collection, Sonatae unarum fidium (1664), is the first
known publication of sonatas for solo
violin and continuo by a German-speaking
composer. From this book we perform
Schmelzer’s Sonata quarta, a work built
on a descending four-note ground bass
pattern. Schmelzer embedded a suite
of dances over the course of the many
variations for the violin, including a
sarabanda and gigue, moving seamlessly
from one to the next. The piece eventually
moves to a free, rhapsodic section in
duple meter, concluding with a fiery series
of arpeggios for the violin. Schmelzer
became the first Austrian after a long
line of Italians to be awarded the position
of Kapellmeister, the highest musical
appointment at the Habsburg court. His
enjoyment of this post was short-lived—
he succumbed to the plague not long
after the appointment.
About Heinrich Ignaz Biber, the
eighteenth-century historian Charles
Burney wrote, “Of all the violin players
of the last century Biber seems to have
been the best, and his solos are the
most difficult and most fanciful of any
music I have seen of the same period.”
Biber’s Sonata in F Major comes from
his Sonatae violino solo (1681), one of
four printed collections published during
the composer’s years in Saltzburg.
Unlike many of Biber’s works, which use
scordatura (variant tunings of the violin),
the Sonata in F Major uses standard
violin tuning. As with all eight sonatas in
the collection, the violin demonstrates
completely uninhibited virtuosity. At times
in sixth or seventh position, these sonatas
are typical of the stylus fantasticus, with
free, rhapsodic and ornate preludes and
finales, brilliantly inventive passagi over
ostinato basses, and frequent, undaunted
use of double stops.
Dietrich Buxtehude likely received his
first musical training from his father, who
was organist at St. Olai Kirke in Elsinore,
Denmark. Buxtehude’s first post was at
St. Maria Kyrka in Helsingborg, and by
1668, he had been appointed organist at
the Marienkirche at Lubeck, one of the
most important musical posts in northern
Germany. His duties there primarily
included composing and playing for the
main morning and afternoon services.
Buxtehude had at his disposal an ever-
changing set of paid instrumentalists and
singers and wrote for all sorts of services
appropriate to the church calendar as
well as for weddings, funerals and the
occasional commission. He published
two collections of seven sonatas for
violin and viola da gamba and continuo
(Hamburg, 1694 and 1696) in which
each of the two solo lines converses with,
imitates, supports, and goads the other
to new heights of expression. The Sonata in A Minor (BuxWV 272) performed
here, however, is a separate work that
did not appear in these two publications.
This sonata is built over two distinct
ostinato bass patterns at the beginning
and end of the piece. These frame a
slower, transitional organ-like section in
F Major that utilizes double stops for the
violin. Throughout, the viola da gamba
alternates between bandying melodic
lines with the violin and dropping down
to cover the bass.
In the long and storied history of the
works of Johann Sebastian Bach, his
Sonata in G Major for violin and basso
continuo (BWV 1021) is a relatively
new arrival. Rediscovered in 1929 in a
collection in Eisenach, it was performed
the same year in Leipzig by Adolf Busch
(violin) and Rudolf Serkin (piano). The
violin sonata is based on an almost
identical bass line to the Trio Sonata in
G Major for violin, flute and continuo
(BWV 1038). Scholars have dated the
autograph copy with precision to the
year 1732 and have determined that it
was a family collaboration. The music
was copied by Bach’s second wife, Anna
Magdalena, while the accompanying
titles, key signatures, and figured bass
indications were written by Bach himself.
The title page reads “Sonata per il violino
e cembalo”, although we have chosen
here to employ a continuo team of organ,
viola da gamba and plucked strings. The
sequence of movements, alternating
slow, fast, slow, fast, is a pattern favored
by Bach in his chamber works. The
expressive melodic writing of the two
slow movements perfectly balances
the lively energy of the Vivace and
Presto movements.
In many ways, Bach’s Sonata in G
Major represents the end of the line
for the stylus fantasticus. Some might
even argue against its inclusion on this
CD. Bach, however, was clearly aware
of the fantastic style and made use of
it—not only as a way of composing, but
as Mattheson described, as a free and
improvisatory way of performing. This
is especially true in Bach’s free and
improvisatory preludia and toccatas for
keyboard and organ, as well as in the solo
sonatas and partitas for violin. The Sonata
in G Major has echoes of these, especially
in the slow movements. We would like to
think that our approach to performing the
piece, with the stretching of tempo here
and there, taking time in key moments,
emphasizing certain dissonant harmonies,
the graceful cascading of passages and
flowing of ornaments, has been enhanced
by our familiarity with Bach’s stylus fantasticus predecessors.
Scott Pauley, Patricia Halverson, Andrew Fouts
Hailed as “One of Pittsburgh’s greatest
treasures” by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Chatham Baroque continues to
excite local, national, and international
audiences with dazzling technique and
lively interpretations of seventeenth- and
eighteenth-century music played on
instruments of the period. Founded in
1990, Chatham Baroque continues to
thrive with a full calendar of concerts,
tours, musical collaborations, and CD
releases. The trio of baroque violin, viola
da gamba, theorbo and baroque guitar
tours nationally and internationally. This
is the ensemble’s tenth commercial CD
release, and the second release on its
own in-house label.
Chatham Baroque offers audiences the
opportunity to hear baroque music that
is accessible and thrillingly vivid, with a
freshness akin to improvisational jazz.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette proclaims,
“Pound for pound, you aren’t going
to find a better ensemble … than
Chatham Baroque.” Chatham Baroque
is repeatedly listed among the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s “Top 50 Cultural Forces
in Pittsburgh” and “Ten Best Classical
Concerts.”
The trio’s Pittsburgh concert series in
recent seasons has been substantially
broadened by exciting collaborations with
Attack Theatre, the Pittsburgh Symphony
Orchestra, Pittsburgh Opera, Renaissance
& Baroque, and the Pittsburgh Chamber
Music Society. The ensemble prides
itself on its commitment to the Pittsburgh
region and its ability to serve nationally
and abroad as ambassadors for the
city. In addition to local and touring
concerts and recording, Chatham
Baroque presents Peanut Butter & Jam
Sessions for pre-schoolers and Music All
Over the Place performances in various
community venues. With the support
of PNC Charitable Trust, Chatham
Baroque brought its Peanut Butter &
Jam Sessions to four Pittsburgh area
early education centers, performing 36
concerts for children from underserved
city neighborhoods. Chatham Baroque
is the proud recipient of Early Music
America’s 2012 Laurette Goldberg Award
for lifetime achievement in early music
outreach programming, and is Ensemble-
in-Residence at WQED-FM and Calvary
Episcopal Church.
Chatham Baroque has toured throughout
the United States as well as in South
America and Mexico, the Virgin
Islands, and Canada. In recent years
the ensemble has appeared at several
summer festivals, including the Piccolo
Spoleto Festival (Charleston, SC) and the
Madison Early Music Festival, where they
also have served on the teaching faculty.
On the road, the ensemble consistently
receives high praise. The Washington Post calls them “musically impeccable”;
the Chicago Tribune, “a splendid
period-instruments ensemble”;
and the New York Times praises
their “colorful virtuosity.”
About
CHATHAM BAROQUE
Andrew Fouts (baroque violin)
joined Chatham Baroque in 2008. In
performance with the ensemble he has
been noted for his “mellifluous sound and
sensitive style” (Washington Post) and as
“an extraordinary violinist” who exhibits
“phenomenal control”(Bloomington Herald-Times), while the Lincoln Journal-Star wrote that his “talent challenges the
top soloists of today’s classical stage.”
In 2008 Andrew won first prize at the
American Bach Soloists’ International
Baroque Violin Competition. In addition
to Chatham Baroque, Andrew has
performed recently with the Four Nations
Ensemble, Apollo’s Fire, Musica Pacifica,
Philharmonia Baroque, and as soloist
with American Bach Soloists. He serves
as concertmaster of the Washington Bach
Consort, about which the Washington Post has written “... Fouts, the group’s
new concertmaster, was exemplary on the
highest part, playing with clean intonation
and radiant tone.”
Patricia Halverson (viola da gamba, violone) holds a doctoral degree in
Early Music Performance Practice from
Stanford University. After completing
her graduate work, she studied in the
Netherlands at the Royal Conservatory in
The Hague. A native of Duluth, Minnesota,
Patricia is a founding
member of Chatham
Baroque and has been
instrumental in raising the
level of Baroque chamber
music performance in the
Pittsburgh area. Recent
performances include
concerts with Ensemble
VIII of Austin, Texas, and
the Washington Bach
Consort and duo viola
da gamba recitals in
Pittsburgh with Martha
McGaughey. In 2013
she appeared with the
Pittsburgh Symphony
Orchestra performing J.S. Bach’s
Brandenburgh Concerto No. 6. Patricia
teaches viola da gamba privately in the
Pittsburgh region and has served on the
faculty of the Viola da Gamba Society
of America’s annual Conclave and the
Madison Early Music Festival.
in Amsterdam. In North America Scott
has performed with Tempesta di Mare,
Musica Angelica, Opera Lafayette,
The Folger Consort, The Four Nations
Ensemble, The Toronto Consort, and
Hesperus and as a soloist with the Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra. He has performed
in numerous Baroque opera productions
as a continuo player, both in the USA
and abroad. In recent years he has
appeared with the English Concert and
Opera Lafayette at Carnegie Hall in New
York, the Library of Congress, and The
Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Scott
has served on the teaching faculty at the
Madison Early Music Festival.
Scott Pauley (theorbo, archlute)
holds a doctoral degree in Early Music
Performance Practice from Stanford
University. Before settling in Pittsburgh
in 1996 to join Chatham Baroque, he
lived in London for five years, where he
studied with Nigel North at the Guildhall
School of Music and Drama. There he
performed with various early music
ensembles, including the Brandenburg
Consort, The Sixteen, and Florilegium.
He won prizes at the 1996 Early Music
Festival Van Vlaanderen in Brugge and
at the 1994 Van Wassenaer Competition
various summer workshops, including the
Amherst Early Music Festival, the Madison
Early Music Festival, and the Rocky
Ridge Music Festival. He is a laureate
of the 2001 Jurow and 2004 Bruges
international harpsichord competitions.
Adam Pearl (chamber organ) is in
demand as a performer of both solo and
ensemble music on historical keyboards.
He has performed throughout the United
States as well as in Europe, South
America and Asia. He has been principal
harpsichordist for Philadelphia’s baroque
orchestra, Tempesta di Mare, since 2005.
He also performs with ensembles such
as Chatham Baroque, the Folger Consort,
the Catacoustic Consort, the American
Bach Soloists, the Bach Sinfonia, Modern
Musick and various modern symphony
orchestras. He has recorded on the
Chandos, Dorian and Plectra labels.
Adam has directed baroque opera
productions with American Opera Theater
and Peabody Chamber Opera. From the
keyboard, he has led performances of
Blow’s Venus and Adonis, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Cavalli’s La Calisto and La Didone, Charpentier’s David et Jonathas,
and Handel’s Acis and Galatea, Giulio Cesare and fully staged productions of
Messiah and Jephtha.
Adam is a member of the Early Music
faculty at the Peabody Conservatory,
where he also studied. He has taught at
Violin, Anonymous, Paris, mid 18th-century
Viola da Gamba, Karl Dennis, Rhode Island, 2003
Violone, John Pringle, North Carolina, 2010
Archlute, Klaus Jacobsen, London, 1996
Theorbo, Klaus Jacobsen, London, 1991
Chamber Organ, Bennett and Giuttari, 1999
Recorded at Calvary Episcopal Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 7–11, 2012
Session Producers: Marc Giosi, Riccardo Schulz
Session Engineer: Riccardo Schulz
Recording Assistants: Eze Azu, Michael Ralph
Editing and Mastering: Riccardo Schulz, Pittsburgh Digital Recording & Editing Company, with Chatham Baroque
Executive Producers: Chatham Baroque
Photos: Laila Archuleta, Wasin Prasertlap
Illustrations: Athanasius Kircher, Musurgia Universalis (1650)
Graphic Design: Little Kelpie
Special thanks Ruey Brodine Morelli, Robert & Liane Norman, William Semins & Hattie Fletcher, and our 87 backers on Kickstarter, whose generous support made this project possible.
Thanks also to the clergy, staff, and congregation of Calvary Episcopal Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Chatham Baroque is Ensemble-in-Residence.
Instruments used on this recording
CB-02 © 2013 Chatham Baroquewww.chathambaroque.org